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Summary

A medieval deserted settlement is visible as earthworks on historic aerial photographs and remote sensing data. Located in fields adjacent the River Great Ouse at Little Barford between The Manor House and St Dennis’s Church, the New Manor House and Lower Farm, a complex of rectangular ditched enclosures, platforms, banked enclosures and a block of ridge and furrow cultivation extend over an area some 260 NW-SE and 450 metres SW-NE. The centre of the area has been bisected by probable post-medieval sand and gravel extraction.

Full Description

An area of complex earthworks around the church of St Denys. The area is shown as a small settlement on Jefferys' county map of 1765 and the enclosure agreement of 1764 mentions recent demolition of buildings. Two cottages shown on the 1840 Tithe Map had been demolished by the time of the 1876 Estate Map. The earthworks surviving indicate the presence of rectilinear closes and platforms, a hollow way, quarrying & fishponds.

The medieval deserted settlement is visible as earthworks on historic aerial photographs and remote sensing data and was mapped as part of the Bedford Borough NMP project. Located in fields adjacent the River Great Ouse at Little Barford between The Manor House and St Dennis’s Church, the New Manor House and Lower Farm and centred at TL 17916 57051, a complex of rectangular ditched enclosures, platforms and banked enclosures extend over an area some 260 NW-SE and 450 metres SW-NE. The centre of the area has been bisected by probable post-medieval sand and gravel extraction.

Adjacent Lower Farm is two rectangular platforms, one about 37 x 36 metres and the other 71 x 66 metres, within each of which are linear earthwork banks that suggest possible buildings. This location appears to correspond with an enclosure and probable building shown on the 1834 OS Original Series 1 inch map. In the same field, bordering the River Great Ouse are a number of ditched enclosures contiguous with a small block of ridge and furrow cultivation earthwork, on the other side of which is a complex of earthwork banks that appear to form a number of enclosures of uncertain function.

Located around the Manor House and St Dennis’s Church, Little Barford, and centred at TL 17716 56943, an earthwork platform and linear ditches the platform appears to bound the southwest and northwest sides of the manor house and adjacent close for about 117 metres. The platform appears to then continue around the church on its northwest and northeast sides. On the northwest and southeast sides of the church graveyard boundary are two linear ditch sections: the NW is about 71.6 metres SW-NE and about 4 metres wide: the SE is at least 54 metres long SW-NE and about 9 metres wide. In the field SE of the church, facing New Manor House, linear lengths of earthwork bank suggests possible remains of a building or enclosure. There are further earthwork banks and ditches whose function is unclear adjacent the ha-ha of New Manor House. (1-2)

BCC Photographic Unit, Plan (Unpublished document). SBD10507.

Bedfordshire & Luton Archives and Records Service Documents, BLARS: AN uncat bundles 23, 30 (Unpublished document). SBD10551.

Bedfordshire & Luton Archives and Records Service Documents, BLARS: AT, MAT 2/1, Tithe Map and Award, 1840 (Unpublished document). SBD10551.

Bedfordshire & Luton Archives and Records Service Documents, BLARS: WG 924, Estate Mao, 1876 (Unpublished document). SBD10551.

Cambridge AP index, ARH 73-76 (16/5/1967) TL 178 568 (Aerial Photograph). SBD10593.

Cambridge AP index, BAJ 42-44 (6/1/1970) TL 179 569 (Aerial Photograph). SBD10593.

Cambridge AP index, BKY 25-26 (25/10/1972) TL 179 570 (Aerial Photograph). SBD10593.

Cambridge AP index, WL 92-95 (5/6/1958) TL 179 571 (Aerial Photograph). SBD10593.

HER plans, Field survey, Jan 1977; earthworks plotted onto OS 1:1250 (Plan). SBD10881.

HER Slide Archive, 1838 (Slide). SBD10508.

HER Slide Archive, 2562 (Slide). SBD10508.

HER Slide Archive, 5169 (Slide). SBD10508.

1765, Jefferys' Map (Map). SBD10612.

1940-1955, RAF Aerial Photos, (1) RAF/106G/UK/635 RP 3301 10-AUG-1945 (Aerial Photograph). SBD10536.

Environment Agency, 1998 - 2014, Light detection and ranging (lidar) airborne survey, (2) TL1756-1757, 1857 (Map). SBB12033.

Protected Status:

• SHINE: Medieval settlement earthworks south and west of Lower Farm

Monument Type(s):

• BANK (EARTHWORK) (Medieval - 1066 AD to 1539 AD)
• BOUNDARY DITCH (Medieval - 1066 AD to 1539 AD)
• BUILDING (Medieval to Victorian - 1066 AD to 1900 AD)
• DESERTED SETTLEMENT (Medieval to Victorian - 1066 AD to 1900 AD)
• DITCH (Medieval - 1066 AD to 1539 AD)
• DITCHED ENCLOSURE (Medieval - 1066 AD to 1539 AD)
• PLATFORM (Medieval - 1066 AD to 1539 AD)
• RIDGE AND FURROW (Medieval - 1066 AD to 1539 AD)

Associated Finds: None recorded

Associated Events: None recorded

Sources and Further Reading

Search results generated by the HBSMR Gateway from exeGesIS SDM Ltd.